'New Moon' and 'Ninja Assassin' arrive on DVD

The following motion pictures are now available on DVD except for “New Moon,” which arrives Saturday. ¶

"The Twilight Saga: New Moon," Summit Entertainment, 130 minutes, Rated PG-13 for some violence and action – In this second installment, Bell (Kristin Stewart) is still in love with the vampire, Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson). When the Cullens throw her a birthday party, Bella accidentally slices her finger, and the sight of her blood proves too tempting for some of the Cullens. They leave town and Bella is inconsolable until she takes up with childhood friend Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner). It’s amazing that Bella can’t find a nice, normal guy. Special features on the two disc set include a commentary, six-part documentary and music videos.

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"Ninja Assassin," Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, 158 minutes, Rated PG-13 for intense disaster sequences and some language — Raizo (Rain) has been raised by the Ozuno clan and trained since he was a youngster to become a silent killer. However their murders eventually prove too much for Raizo to stomach, so he decides to leave the clan. Eventually he joins forces with an Interpol agent (Naomie Harris), who suspects that his clan may be behind a series of assassinations around the world. With its incredible action sequences, this film raises the bar for all future martial arts films. Bonus materials on the Blu-ray version include three featurettes and additional scenes.

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"The Princess and the Frog," WarnerHome Video, 101 minutes, Rated PG for mild thematic elements, some adventure action and brief language — This modern retelling of “The Frog Prince” is set in Jazz Age New Orleans. There, Tiana, who dreams of owning her own restaurant meets Prince Naveen, a playboy. After Naveen is turned into a frog by an evil voodoo magician, Tiana kisses him, hoping to restore his humanity and finds herself turned into a frog instead. This is a great family film as they team up with a lovesick firefly and trumpet-playing crocodile in an effort to get back to where they belong. Extras on the three-disc Blu-ray set include a standard DVD, a digital copy, deleted scenes, featurettes and a music video.

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"Armored," 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, 101 minutes, Rated PG-13 for nudity and brief strong language — Just back from Iraq, Ty (Columbus Short) is working as a security guard for an armored car firm. In danger of losing his home and his brother, Ty agrees to go along with a plan devised by his co-workers to steal $42 million. But a hitch in the plan causes Ty to change his mind and pits him against the other thieves. The cast includes Matt Dillon, Jean Reno and Laurence Fishburne. Definitely worth a look. Special features include three featurettes and commetaries.Â

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"The Fourth Kind,"Screen Media, 98 minutes, Rated R for sexual content, brief nudity, some drug material and language — Alaska seems to be home to more UFO sightings and alien encounters. In this film, Milla Jovovich plays Dr. Abagail Tyler, a psychologist who claims her daughter was abducted by aliens. It’s a strange film that wants viewers to take the phenomenon seriously. But by having an actress play the real-life protagonist only leaves viewers wondering where “real” left off and Hollywood took over. Extras on the Blu-ray include deleted scenes.

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"Unrivaled," Vivendi Entertainment, 90 minutes, Rated R for sequences of brutal violence, sexual content including graphic nudity, and language — Ringo Duran (Hector Echavarria) dreams of becoming a professional cage fighter. When the owners of the circuit decide to stage a tournament to find the best unknown fighters, Ringo’s friend enters him without telling him. It’s a “Rocky” for the UCW generation. Extras on the Blu-ray include commentaries, interviews and featurettes.

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Best of the Rest: ¶

"Wonderful World" — Ben has a dark view of the world that may change when his roommate’s sister comes to stay in their apartment; ¶

"Astro Boy" — Animated feature about a scientist who creates a robot with super powers to replace the boy that he lost; ¶

"Did You Hear About the Morgans?" — Comedy about an estranged couple who see a murder and are forced into the witness-protection program together; |

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"Broken Embraces" — A blind writer decides the time has come to come to terms with his wounds from 14 years ago; ¶

"Bandslam" — A crew of misfits comes together to form a rock group and compete in their school’s battle of the bands; ¶

"Paris" — While waiting for a heart transplant, Pierre, a dancer, people watches from his balcony until his sister and her three children move in.

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¶Probably the biggest news this week is that 20th Century Fox has announced that “Avatar,” the top-grossing film of all time will arrive on Blu-ray and standard DVD on April 20.

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Other titles of note this week include four “Faith and Family” films from Vivendi. Priced at$14,93 each, the titles include “Soldier Love Story,” “Expecting a Miracle,” “Miles from Nowhere” and “Relative Stranger.”

In conjunction with “New Moon,” Summit Entertainment is releasing “Twilight in Forks: The Saga of the RealTown.” Priced at $19.99, the 84-documentary looks at the small town that serves as the setting for the films.

For nostalgia lovers, Shout Factory has released “The Goldbergs: The Ultimate Goldbergs.” Priced at $59.99, the six-disc set contains all 71 episodes of the pioneering TV series as well as 12 episodes from the radio show.

Finally, BBC Video is releasing the pilot episode and first season of “Judge John Deed” on three discs for $39.98.